Bringing Slow Release Nitrogen Solutions to Help Florida’s Waterways

By Mark Slavens

Innovation at ScottsMiracle-Gro begins with a deep appreciation of consumer needs. We know we’re more than just a product on the shelf, we’re a trusted partner to those looking to cultivate beautiful and healthy plant life around their homes and neighborhoods. That’s why it’s important to help homeowners use water more efficiently and to protect it’s quality when using our products.

More than five years ago, Scotts made the groundbreaking announcement that it would remove phosphorus from all its lawn maintenance products nationwide in order to improve the environmental impact of its lawn care products. And now, we’re introducing new 50 percent slow-release nitrogen lawn food products throughout the entire state of Florida, helping homeowners more easily protect local waterways from the threat of excess nutrients when working in their yards.

Nitrogen is an essential building block to maintaining healthy plants and lawns – in fact all living things need it to survive. Yet, it’s important to keep excess nitrogen from entering local waterways and adding fuel to algal blooms. Fortunately, when nutrients, such as nitrogen, are slowly released over an extended period of time, it can benefit Florida’s environment by keeping lawns consistently healthy and able to properly serve as a barrier to runoff, particularly during heavy rain such as the ones that occur during Florida’s summers.

This new product solution signals a milestone in our Company’s “Water Positive Landscapes” initiative aimed at helping homeowners use water more efficiently and to protect it when working in their yards. We’re excited that these products will be the first 50 percent slow release nitrogen offerings that also uses Scotts’ unique all-in-one-particle technology so our consumers will continue to see even feeding across their lawns. More than five years were invested into the research necessary to develop this reliable slowly releasing nitrogen, uniquely designed with Florida’s climate, year-round gardening and soil composition in mind.

Bringing this kind of innovation to the market is always a team effort. Over the past several years, through Florida’s “Smarter Solutions for Cleaner Waterways” initiative we’ve been able to work collaboratively with state and local stakeholders to develop and distribute this product solution.

The multi-year commitment also worked to support in-state partners on water quality research, habitat restoration, consumer education and green infrastructure improvements. Today, this work continues through our national Water Positive(TM) Landscape initiative to drive research and education on the intersection between lawn care and gardening and water stewardship.

We’ll continue to work on the research that allows for the best delivery of nitrogen to plants as well as other water-saving technologies that allow consumers to make the most of every drop of water and build beneficial lawns and gardens. Greenspaces which will in turn work to filter storm water, recharge groundwater supplies and counteract urban heat islands. This is our commitment as we help others to nurture their lawns and greenspaces in ways that work in harmony with the world around them.